Kia Motors Warns of Text Message Scam

A recent text message scam in New Zealand could easily find its way to the U.S.

Be careful out there

At Auto Credit Express we like to remind our bad credit car loan customers, as well as everyone else, that the internet is not always the safest place to be. Just like any other neighborhood, there are always people out there trying to obtain your private information and separate you from your hard-earned dollars.

Kia hoax text message

A press release from Kia Motors New Zealand made that point recently when it warned that anyone receiving a text message on their mobile phone bearing the Kia Motors logo and informing them of a lottery win should know that the message was a scam.

Here is the press release:

Kia Motors Warns Of Hoax Text Message

Kia Motors New Zealand is warning anyone receiving a mobile phone text message telling informing them of a lottery win and asking for banking details that it is a hoax.

The company's Auckland head office was alerted to the hoax after receiving a number of calls from people who had received the text, asking if it was real.

“It most certainly isn't – it's a scam and my advice to anyone who receives such a text is to ignore it, delete it,” says Todd McDonald, General Manager of Kia Motors New Zealand.

The text message uses the Kia Motors “Power To Surprise” logo and is headed Fill In and Return Kia Motor Lottery Verification Form For Approval. The sender is signed Dr Lewis Anderson, purporting to be the Cash Officer for Kia Motors in this Region, but the giveaway is that his email address uses Google mail not the official Kia Motors email addresses.

Recipients are told their lucky mobile number has won them £497,000 (British Pounds Sterling, equal to $819,500) and a 2009 Kia model and on a second page asks for delivery details, including online banking. “Presumably they want to obtain a bank account number and a password, which is typical of these types of scams,” adds Mr. McDonald.

“This one is a slightly different take on the emails to computers purporting to be from banks. It's the first I have heard of scams messages to mobile phones. Whoever is behind this has got hold of a mobile phone list - not one of ours, I hasten to add – and they are passing themselves off as representing Kia Motors and using our logo to make people believe that it is a real offer.”

The bottom line

Here at Auto Credit Express, we want you to improve your credit, but we also want you to avoid the scam artists that only want to take advantage of you. Remember, “if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is”. Take this advice and we hope to see you “on the road” to better credit.

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